


It's Not So Bad

by appalachianemo



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast), The Adventure Zone: Amnesty (Podcast)
Genre: M/M, This is literally all fluff, like. teeth rotting sweet fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-20
Updated: 2019-03-20
Packaged: 2019-11-26 07:26:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18177647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/appalachianemo/pseuds/appalachianemo
Summary: Indrid decides he needs to go camping and who better to take than his monster fighting, hero forest ranger boyfriend Duck Newton!Featuring: Moth jokes, some fruit gifts, and Family.





	It's Not So Bad

**Author's Note:**

> hey yall! this is for the Amnesty Minibang and I'm super excited to share it with you guys! While you're here please check [ @pufferfishish](http://pufferfishish.tumblr.com) on tumblr for their amazing art of my fic! (and amazing art not of my fic!)

Spring had settled early in Kepler, West Virginia, but it wasn’t the kind of early where you would even notice. It started as an unseasonably warm few days in February before it turned colder, but never quite as cold as it should have gotten. Instead the warmth slowly seeped back into the air and the ground. The grass turned its vibrant hue of green and the trees came back to life. Most Kepler residents seemed not to notice, instead taking advantage of the warm weather to air out the staleness that had settled over the long winter months. No one trusting the weather not to disappear again.

Indrid, however, had seen that the warm weather didn’t seem to be going anywhere. He cracked the windows of the Winnebago and, for the first time since last October, stepped outside in less that three layers of clothing. As he sat on the steps of the RV, perfectly situated in a patch of sun breaking through the canopy of branches overhead, he was struck with the familiar weight in his chest he gets every year. The sudden, inescapable need to be away from where ever he is now. The desire to be lost in the woods and unfamiliar with his surroundings. And each year year he ignored it, choosing instead to just set up a campsite, set out chairs and a hammock and maybe sleep outside a few times.

Often times find himself staring off into the woods, much like he was now, wishing to be in that “somewhere else.” He didn’t want to _permanently_ leave Kepler, though. Ever since Mama founded the Lodge in the 80’s and some Sylphs had moved in, he’d called this place home. It never _felt_ like home, though. Not in the way Sylvain had. Home was just… Wherever his camper was at that moment. Duck, Aubrey, and Ned coming to see him had changed that a little, sure. They’d all become friends, but he could never shake the feeling that he was still just wandering, unanchored, and never settling down.

When Duck pulled up in his forestry truck Indrid was thankful for the distraction. He smiled and waved from the steps as Duck shut the truck door behind him, “Hi Duck! I didn’t know you’d be stopping.”

“Oh, well. Y’know… I gotta do the daily, uh— Inspections? Of uhm… The campsites? Yeah… Yeah that seems right. Daily inspections.” Duck tried to act serious and professional as he made his way over to Indrid.

“Does my campsite pass your inspection?” He smiled and crossed his arms. “I’ve been very careful with hanging up my trash, and putting out my fires by following your ‘douse, stir, then sprinkle’ method.”

“Yeah? Everything looks great…” There was a small silence before they both started laughing. This had become a semi-regular occurrence. Sometimes, like today, Indrid would call him to stop by, and other times Duck would “surprise” him. He would tell Juno, or whoever was at the station that day, that he was going to go check on one of the campgrounds. He would, but he would always save Indrid’s campsite for last and use it as an excuse to go see him. “I’ve got my lunch packed in the truck, lemme go grab it.”

As Duck wandered back to his truck Indrid was struck with a thought. Maybe he _could_ go stomping through the woods this year. He could go and take a certain someone that not only has a lot of experience with the woods, but cryptids as well. It would also mean he’d have to come back, not that Indrid had really planned on running away. He went and sat down at the picnic table with Duck, as he pulled out a couple of sandwiches and some chips for himself and then an armload of juice boxes and fruit.

“What’s all this for?” Indrid picked up an orange and began to peel it.

“You, moth boy. I know you eat a lot of fruit and juice boxes now that you can’t get your hands on some nog... Figured I’d bring you some.” Duck peeled the plastic wrap off of his sandwich and took a bite before snagging one of the bananas for himself. “Besides, bugs like fruit.”

“Are you implying that I prefer fruit and juice because I’m part moth?” Indrid feigned offence.

“I ain’t implying shit, honey.” Duck said, pointing his sandwich at Indrid. “I got a degree in biology with a focus on botany and wildlife. I _know_ that’s why you like that stuff.”

He huffed and popped an orange slice into his mouth before mumbling, “Just because it’s true doesn’t mean you have to say it.”

Duck laughed before turning his attention back to his sandwich, the sound of visitors going about their weekend filled the silence. There was a little girl squealing as she played with her dog, doors opening and closing, kids tore up and down the road on bikes. Yet again, Indrid found everything else fading out and his gaze pulled towards the woods. There was a trail just on the other side of the road that led down to the river. From there, Indrid could wander for days and not get lost The thought was beyond tempting at this point, especially knowing he could probably take Duck with him.

Duck was busy, though. They were starting to get more campers and visitors to the forest. Plus they were in the middle of tracking the latest abomination to get through the gate. Despite all of this, Indrid still found himself asking, “Do you want to go camping next weekend?”

“Well…” Duck set down his sandwich. “Sure, babe. What, uh— What brought this on?”

“I’m not sure… I can’t quite explain it. I just… I just want— I _need_ to go out _._ I need to be somewhere other than this campground…” He let out a sigh of frustration. “This happens every year and, well, I’ve just always ignored it. I’m not even sure _why_ I feel the need to go out there. Plus, I didn’t quite trust myself to go walking through the woods for a few days. I’ve always been paranoid that… _something_ would happen.”

“Are you sure this isn’t some... Migration thing?”

“Duck, please. For five minutes can we stop with the moth jokes?” Indrid smiled, and rolled his eyes.

Despite his joke, Duck knew this was serious, and he understood what Indrid was trying to imply. Ever since Point Pleasant and Silver Bridge, he’d been very careful about going out anywhere. Hell, when that Hornet kid Keith had seen him, he’d been packed up and about to leave not even an hour after. This all just seemed really sudden and out of character. “Okay, so what’s changed? Why go now?”

“I have you!” He was smiling wildly at him now. “I have hero forest ranger, monster hunter, and love of my life: Duck Newton!”

He turned a deep shade of red and pressed a hand over his face, “Indrid, maybe one of those things is true… But hell, I’ll go. You and I can go camping next weekend… I’ve still got my gear from twenty years ago.”

“Great! This means the world to me, dear. Really.” There was a pause as Indrid reached over to pull Duck’s hand away from his face. “Thank you for saying yes.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was still warm the following Friday as Duck hammered the tent into the ground and Indrid spread out their gear, both of them enjoying the warm sun breaking through the trees. They’d been hiking most of the day, finally leaving Indrid’s campsite around eleven that morning. By the time they found a good spot to camp out it was almost six and the light was beginning to fade. Indrid had spent most of the hike listening to Duck point out plants and identify animals by their tracks. Several times he had been able to point out certain wildflowers even though they hadn’t bloomed yet.

Duck had brought along a small speaker to play music off his phone with. The quiet strums of guitar and his soft voice filling the space around them, almost drowned out the roar of the small burner. Indrid sat back off his heels and watched Duck as he finished up with the tent and began to hang the hammock they had brought. He smiled as he admired the small space they had set up for themselves in such a short notice. It was the bare minimum needed for survival, but Indrid was satisfied with it, nonetheless. It was comfortable and livable and Duck was here, so it may as well be home.

Duck joined Indrid on the ground, grabbing a fork to eat their ramen straight out of the pot. They sat side by side, eating in silence, as the sun set. Where they’d stopped and set up camp had a view down into the valley and across the mountains. The setting sun illuminated the Alleghany mountains and highlighted the sky in pale blues and golds. The colors of the sky seeming to cancel itself out, blending into a hazy grey just above the horizon. The sun still glinted off the Greenbrier River below, though not quite as blinding and brilliant as it had been just an hour ago.

After they’d eaten, Duck and Indrid decided to get into their hammock and finish watching the sunset. Duck had been rubbing circles on his arm and swinging the hammock, while singing along with the radio again. His music was an odd mix of folk music and mid-90’s punk, but he was currently singing about a woman named Jolene. Halfway through the song, Indrid couldn’t help but interrupt.

“Duck, I’m sorry. I love your singing, but is this a song about a man-stealing cryptid?”

Duck’s jaw dropped as he turned to look at him, “What? No! This— it’s— Have you never heard Dolly Parton before?”

“Should I have?”

“Yes!” Duck practically shouted. “I can’t believe you’ve… _Really_ Indrid? You’re not just shittin me?”

“No, but you still didn’t answer the question. Is this about a cryptid?” Indrid fought to keep a smile of his face. “Because this sounds like a couple Sylphs I know that came to Earth. Though, you would probably call them mermaids or sirens.”

Duck stared at him for a moment then rolled his eyes, “You shit. You are lying. I hate your guts.”

“Honestly, the song sets itself up. Beauty beyond compare, flaming locks of auburn hair, ivory skin, emerald green eyes. Not to mention how haunting the song sounds. Jolene _haunts this man’s sleep,_ Duck!”

“Indrid—”

“Not to mention, we _all_ know Dolly parton was a cryptid hunter years ago. Being around the gate so much is what gave her her singing powers.”

“Indrid Cold I swear to God. You’re the worst and I love you.” He huffed and looked back out at the river. Indrid leaned over and gave him a quick kiss before getting up to go fill up their water bottle.

“So how far from Kepler are we, anyways?”

“Probably about six or seven miles. Not too far.” Duck fished a handful of trail mix out of his bag and popped it in his mouth. “I figured tomorrow we could hike the three miles down to the reservoir, eat lunch, and then hike back here?”

“Sounds good, babe.” Indrid wandered back over and laid down in the hammock, half on top of Duck.

They shuffled around for a minute, trying to get comfortable, before Duck asked, “How’re you feelin? Is this what you’d hoped it would be?”

He was silent for a long time, reveling in the view and the warmth of Duck laying under him, fighting off the chill that still settled in at night. It was silent and peaceful, only the quiet sounds the wind in the trees and animals moving through the forest. The ground here was soft and muddy from the recent rain and there were wildflowers starting to push up through it, purple and yellow ones that Duck had identified as Southern Blue Flag Irises. It was such a change from how the campground had been for the past week or so, and it felt wonderful,

He nodded slowly, “Yeah… It really is.”

Indrid pulled the sides of the hammock up and around them, wrapping them up. Duck kissed the top of his head and held him just a little tighter, mumbling some joke about being in a cocoon. Ned had made the same joke earlier in the week, but he hadn’t minded either time. Duck didn’t judge him and this was comfortable. It was one of those moments where Indrid was surprised at just how comfortable he was. He’d never really gotten the hang of human interaction and rarely felt relaxed around them. That was starting to change, though.

Aubrey, Ned and Duck had done quite a bit to help him. They’d been stopping by more and more frequently and taking him out to go places. This week they’d been to see him even more often than usual. Indrid seen both Aubrey and Ned visiting him quite a few times, but he assumed it was Pine Guard related business. None of the visions had shown him enough for him to know it was actually the two of them worrying like nervous parents. They’d stopped by on their own to drop off various things. A knife from Ned, some firestarter tools from Aubrey, both of them went out together and bought a hammock. Ned claimed it would ‘be like a cocoon’ earning a hit from Aubrey They had tried to give him hiking advice and make sure he had the right shoes.

They had even shown up that day claiming they were just there to drop Duck, his gear, and some extra supplies off. Aubrey had snuck some juice boxes out of Amnesty Lodge and given them to Indrid, while Ned had brought a bag of fruit and fruit roll-ups. As Duck was putting on the pack they were bringing, Aubrey and Ned had pulled Indrid into a tight hug, making him promise, for the millionth time, to be safe. Neither of them wanted to have to go hunt down a rogue Mothman.

Now that Indrid was out here, half laying on top of Duck while wrapped in a hammock, he realized he was far more content than he had been since he came to this planet. Maybe even more than when he was still a seer in Sylvain. Maybe it was just some weird moth migration thing. Maybe Indrid just didn’t need to stay cooped up inside the winnebago all the time. Before he could help himself he began to laugh, startling Duck who had dozed off.

“Jesus, Indrid. You wanna tell me what you’re laughin at alone in the woods?” Duck chuckled and smoothed Indrid’s hair out of his face.

“I was just thinking… This is really nice, and that— That whatever was going on with me seems to have disappeared. It occured— I had the thought that… That maybe I just needed to get out and… And spread my wings.” He dissolved into a fit of giggles at his own bad pun, though Duck wasn’t really surprised by this. He just squeezed him a little tighter and pressed a kiss to his forehead, quietly laughing at Indrid. After they’d both calmed down, Indrid pushed himself up into a half sitting position so he could actually look at Duck.

“Thank you, Duck, for doing this with me.”

“Of course. I love spending time with you. Besides, it’s a nice way to relax after that last fuckin hunt.”

“Yeah… Thank you for also, you know. Being there, I guess.” As Indrid went to lay back down he was hit with flashes of visions and interactions, but they were different. Sometimes, in order to help him understand the future, he’d get vivid flashbacks instead. He saw his own memories of late nights at the Cryptonomica with Barclay in the Chewbacca costume and him in a papier-mache moth suit, laughing as they “pretended” to be cryptids for Saturday Night Dead bits. He saw all the times he’d had to call Ned because the Winnebago was having engine troubles. Sometimes Ned called him just to talk. There was also Aubrey, taking him grocery shopping. Only for him to inevitably call her because he didn’t know how to cook what they’d bought. Sometimes Aubrey would call him, worried about losing control of her powers again. She knew Indrid couldn’t just will a vision to happen, but talking to him calmed her down anyways.

Indrid saw endless memories of him and Duck. Indrid had had visions of things going wrong and disasters that he couldn’t do anything about. He didn’t know where they were going to happen or even when, sometimes, and it would drive him insane some nights. He’d end up calling Duck, often waking him up, and he’d always make his way to Indrid’s to spend the night. When Duck lost Minerva, and all the powers she gave him, the roles ended up reversed. Duck would call Indrid, worried sick that he wouldn’t be able to take the big hits and protect Aubrey and Ned like before. Yet again, Duck would end up at Indrid’s.

They’d talk about anything but what had been mentioned on the phone. Some nights Duck would bring kraft mac and cheese and Indrid would sit on the counter as Duck cooked. Some nights they’d make hot chocolate and talk until the sun came up and Duck had to go to work. Most of the time, though, they went to bed and stayed how they were now. Indrid half on Duck’s chest, head tucked under his chin, and their legs tangled together. Duck would wrap his arms around him and they’d lay there, not sleeping but not quite awake either, silence stretching out between them.

Now, in the fading twilight with just the edge of the horizon still a faint orange, Indrid let himself relax a little more. He decided he wasn’t going to leave Kepler, not for a while. Because a few insistent people had decided on keeping him around. He’d made a home in the late night phone calls and burnt food and outlandish ideas. No matter what happened, he was grateful that Duck, Aubrey, and Ned hadn’t let him leave Kepler all those months ago, and they definitely weren’t going to let him go now.

Indrid let out a deep, content sigh, squeezing his arm around Duck, “I love you, Duck Newton... Thank you for… Everything.”

**Author's Note:**

> also, if you wanna scream at me about this fic or amnesty in general feel free to stop by my tumblr [ @emomagnusburnsides](http://emomagnusburnsides.tumblr.com)


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